Ranked as the second seed by Riot, Saigon Buffalo has a chance to advance, but their opponents are not exactly pushovers.
After two years absent from the international stage, the VCS region is still highly regarded by Riot and placed in the second seed. This allows the MSI 2022 representatives, SGB, to avoid strong opponents like PSG Talon (PCS) and Evil Geniuses (LCS).
With the draw results announced just a few days ago, SGB will be in Group A alongside T1, DetonatioN FocusMe (LJL), and Team Aze (LLA). Besides T1, which is almost guaranteed to advance, Mister Ren and his team will compete for the last spot with the two representatives from Japan and Latin America.
Representative from LJL – DetonatioN FocusMe
DFM is a familiar team that has been in the Wildcard group for the past years. Having consistently dominated the domestic Japanese leagues, this team has gradually become a regular at international tournaments. In 2021, DFM made an impression at the 2021 World Championship Play-In Stage by finishing above Cloud9 and securing direct entry into the group stage.
However, currently, DFM’s brightest star, Mid Laner Aria, has returned to compete in the LCK. As a result, the strength of the representative from Japan is considered somewhat diminished, even though they have added two other Korean imports.
DFM’s two newcomers this season are relatively young and have experience competing in the LCK. Support Harp has played 21 games for KT Rolster in the 2021 Summer Split. Meanwhile, Mid Laner Yaharong also has 12 appearances for Fredit BRION in the LCK. This player was also part of BRO’s 2-0 victory over T1 in the 2021 Spring Split, but that was when T1 was rotating their roster and Faker was not playing.
The other Korean player on DFM is Steal, who has been around long enough to be considered a domestic player alongside two veterans, Evi in the Top Lane and Yutapon as the AD Carry. Clearly, communication issues will still be a disadvantage for this team compared to SGB. However, with many players having international competition experience and young talents from the LCK, they could punish SGB’s inexperienced lineup at any moment.
Representative from Latin America – Team Aze
The other team in this group is a relatively unfamiliar name, AZE. In the LLA Spring 2021, this team finished second with a record of 9 wins and 5 losses, far behind Rainbow7 by 4 points. However, R7’s unexpected slip in the playoffs allowed AZE to seize the opportunity to claim the championship and advance to MSI 2022 without directly defeating this tough opponent.
Notably, AZE also has a duo of imports from Korea. Top Laner Lonely is a former young talent from Gen.G Esports and was a backup for Summit at Liiv SANDBOX. However, Lonely has yet to debut in the LCK.
AD Carry 5kid is more impressive with 15 games played for KT Rolster in the 2021 Summer Split. Additionally, this 1999-born player has teamed up with Harp, DFM’s current Support, multiple times. Therefore, their reunion at MSI 2022 is truly a memorable milestone for the former bottom lane duo of KT.
With five players from four different nationalities, language barriers are inevitable in Aze. Additionally, these players have no prior international competitive experience, making them the weakest team in this group.
SGB has the youngest average age at MSI 2022; however, Mister Ren’s squad benefits from being connected over three seasons. The newest name, Shogun, has also been with this lineup for two seasons. Therefore, if they don’t “choke” unexpectedly and face psychological issues, given their strength compared to the other two teams in the group (excluding T1), SGB has a real chance of securing a spot in the top six at MSI 2022.